Toyota recall: DOT Secretary Ray LaHood pulls back from telling owners not to drive their cars

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood just said he misspoke when he earlier advised owners of the eight recalled models to park them and not drive them until they can be brought into dealers to have their accelerator pedals repaired.

He said it was "obviously a misstatement" and apparently is falling back on earlier advice, which is that owners should take in their recalled cars for repairs when notified, but you can keep driving your car unless it shows signs of having a sticky accelerator pedal.

In a statement issued at 1:40 p.m., LaHood said:

I want to encourage owners of any recalled Toyota models to contact their local dealer and get their vehicles fixed as soon as possible. NHTSA will continue to hold Toyota's feet to the fire to make sure that they are doing everything they have promised to make their vehicles safe. We will continue to investigate all possible causes of these safety issues.

Earlier in the day, the Associated Press had reported:

LaHood's warning came Wednesday in testimony before a House Appropriations subcommittee on transportation. LaHood says his advice to owners is to "stop driving it. Take it to a Toyota dealer because they believe they have a fix for it."

Toyota's most recent recall in the United States affects 2.3 million vehicles with the potential for sticking gas pedals. LaHood told reporters earlier in the day that Toyota owners should contact their dealer immediately and "exercise caution until repairs can be made."

In addition, Transportation is probing to see if other automakers might have the same problems as Toyotas if they share similar pedal systems. And it's getting complaints about braking systems in Prius. Yesterday LaHood called Toyota weak on safety and said his own department had to send an official to Tokyo to prompt the pedal recall.

Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Toyota have been recommending only that drivers be careful and look for symptoms that their cars could have unintended acceleration -- even though Toyota stopped selling the models last week. To Drive On, this made no sense. If the cars are dangerous enough that they can't be sold, how could owners still be fine driving them?

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About Chris Woodyard

Chris Woodyard is an auto writer for USA TODAY who covers all aspects of motoring. He revels in the exhaust note of a Maserati and the sharp creases of a Cadillac CTS. Chris strives to live a Porsche life on a Scion budget. More about Chris